Over 60 Club looks to new location

Martin B. Cassidy, Staff Writer

Updated
10:45 pm EST, Tuesday, January 3, 2012

STAMFORD -- In more than 30 years working as part of the city's social safety net, Jeanne Ormond said she has seen how area seniors rely on the Over 60 Club for social interaction, a healthy meal, or help with the challenges of finding health care and staying independent, she said.

"We've seen so many other groups and clubs who don't exist because it is so hard to keep them going," said Ormond, the city's former health director. "It has really been a place for those who are physically and mentally needy to come to feel comfortable and not feel any stress or pressure."

After being asked to vacate its rent-free space provided by Senior Services of Stamford at 945 Summer St. by the end of February, administrators of the club, which has operated in the city since 1947, have arranged to move to a new home at St. John's Episcopal Church on Main Street.

The move, along with the club's ability to pay staff salaries and other program costs, however, hinges on an upcoming budget vote by the Senior Services of Stamford's Board of Trustees, said Betty McOsker, the club's program director.

Senior Services of Stamford, which is seeking to tighten spending, is expected to make a decision on funding for the club in the next two to three weeks, officials said.

"We have to wait for the board to make a decision," McOsker said. "If we can move to St. John's Episcopal Church, it will cost us very little to move there, but if we had to move someplace different, it would cost something else."

Carmen Domonkos, board chairwoman for Senior Services of Stamford, said the impetus to move the Over 60 Club is economic, as the nonprofit has felt a double toll of dwindling donations and tepid investment portfolio results.

Domonkos said Senior Services hopes the club can become an independent nonprofit as soon as possible so the organization can focus resources on its top priority of providing emergency assistance grants for low-income elderly.

"We're trying to complete a transition plan with them," she said. "We're trying to focus on what our major mission is, which is emergency assistance to help low-income seniors, and that number in our budget has been falling for a number of years."

The amount of money available to disperse through the grants has fallen $140,000 a year since three years ago, she said.

"We just can't further reduce that," Domonkos said.

Father James Wheeler, rector of St. John's Episcopal Church, said he is excited about the possibility of the Over 60 Club moving to the church.

The club would be situated in a recently renovated second-floor hall that is equipped with an elevator, he said.

"We would love them to come over and have their home here, and the more we looked into it the better it seemed," Wheeler said. "This is a group that does great work with a particular population, and we'd really like to see this marriage happen."

Ormond, who also serves as a trustee of Senior Services of Stamford, said she would recommend Senior Services maintain the club as a priority to be funded rather than convert it into an independent entity.

"I think we should just fund them and worry about what happens next year when that comes," Ormond said.

The club offers weekday services, including programs on Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., which includes a subsidized lunch, McOsker said.

Monday, Tuesday and Thursday the program offers additional programs, including line-dancing classes and informational speakers, she said.

McOsker said it is important the club get whatever support it can this year, even if it must strike out on its own in the future to raise funds.

"If we can have that one year of support we can start soliciting some of the corporations around town for sponsorships," McOsker said. "Right now, our main concern has been having a home."

Staff Writer Martin B. Cassidy can be reached at martin.cassidy@scni.com or at 203-964-2264.